Who's Afraid Of MALCOLM & MARIE?

  It shouldn't be a surprise that Malcolm & Marie, the first great movie of 2021, has polarizing reviews. It's got a 58% on RT and that's mostly because critics...don't like being criticized. It's a simple movie about a couple fighting because Malcolm, a director, didn't thank his girlfriend, Marie, at his movie's big premiere. There's no plot, no structure, no corny twists or contrived bullshit - just two adults hashing their shit out in a festival of dialog and exceptional acting.

But why do Critics not like it?

  There's a lengthy, jocular scene where Malcolm goes on a tangent about the piss-poor state of film journalism as he hate-reads a critic's positive, but condescending, review. I happen to agree with everything he says but this isn't what M&M's about. But critics, being myopic, got tripped up over it. Nearly every review stinks of snide, near-sighted accusations that writer-director Sam Levinson is "angry" and "having a meltdown." I guess, to someone simple-minded, Malcolm is the only character acting as Levinson's 'mouthpiece' since he, too, is a man...? And a director...?

  Considering Levinson wrote both characters, the damp identity-politicking critiques zip past simple-mindedness and plunge straight into sexism. They write off Marie as someone created just to absorb Malcolm's vitriol but she has more agency and interiority than Diana Prince did in both Wonder Woman movies combined. She challenges Malcolm's critical criticism, drying his sweaty ass out with a simple "You're not making pottery for a living. You are a filmmaker and filmmaking is the most capitalist, mainstream artform on the planet". She even sides with the writer of that condescending LA Times review, saying that the criticisms of Malcolm's movie can double as criticisms of their relationship.

  But if you think you're on Marie's side...that's bound to change within 5 or 10 or even 2 minutes and vice-versa. It's funny, challenging, infuriating, heartbreaking, romantic, and cathartic, but your allegiance is never set in stone. There are no absolutes in this world - who knows, I might fall out of love with it someday -  but, for right now, I'm holding on for dear life.